ITA Launches New ITA Student-Athlete Mentorship Program

The Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) has launched a new student-athlete mentorship program that will aim to strengthen the personal and professional development of current student-athletes through mentorship from successful college tennis alumni.

As a continued effort to provide more development opportunities not only for the coaches within the association, but their student-athletes as well, this program adds to an array of opportunities the ITA has established over the past few years for student-athletes which include the ITA Student-Athlete Council and ITA Rising Coaches Program.

"We are thrilled to launch this inaugural student-athlete/alumni mentorship program,” stated ITA Community Manager, Elicia Smith. “Our 2023-24 ITA Student-Athlete Council was instrumental in its creation, proposing a mentorship program with our College Tennis Alumni Network as a way to help alleviate the stressful and daunting process of transitioning out of college athletics. We hope this program will provide student-athletes with the tools, connections, and resources to feel more prepared as they enter this next chapter in their lives, and empower them to feel confident in their potential beyond the tennis court."

Available to student-athletes entering their final year of college, the ITA Student-Athlete Mentorship Program will pair 15 student-athletes with 15  members of the ITA College Tennis Alumni Network, and will cultivate a collaborative relationship in which the mentor and mentee will discuss many key aspects of the transition to the professional world after graduation.

Spanning the duration of the academic year (September to April), student-athletes will be paired with mentors based on factors such as professional interests, level of college tennis played, and their biggest concerns about the transition after college.

Once paired, the mentors and mentees will go through an orientation session hosted by an ITA staff member before beginning the year-long program. Throughout the year, pairings will have monthly objectives and will be asked to reflect each month on previous months discussions.